Patriots Are Favorites to Win Super Bowl, Vegas Oddsmakers Say

[clevfan]

Patriots Are Favorites to Win Super Bowl, Vegas Oddsmakers Say

Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- The New England Patriots, who finished the regular season with a franchise-record 12-game winning streak, are favored to win the Super Bowl by Las Vegas oddsmakers.

Las Vegas Sports Consultants, a company that advises casinos on their sports betting lines, lists the Patriots at 2-1 to win the National Football League's championship game Feb. 1 in Houston.

The Stardust Race & Sports Book also has the Patriots as the 2-1 favorite, while the Palms Race & Sports Book lists New England as the 3-2 top pick.

``It has a lot to do with them winning a million in row,'' Jeff Sherman, sports book manager at the Palms, said in a telephone interview. ``As they kept winning, their (odds) kept coming down.''

With 2-1 odds, winning bettors would collect $2 for every dollar wagered.

The Patriots, who beat Buffalo 31-0 Sunday to complete a 14-2 regular season, allowed the fewest points in the NFL this year and have home-field advantage throughout the American Football Conference playoffs.

``New England's defense has been exceptional the last few weeks, especially at home,'' Kenny White, chief executive of Las Vegas Sports Consultants, said in an interview.

White's company lists the Philadelphia Eagles as the second- favorite at 5-2, followed by the St. Louis Rams at 3-1 and the Kansas City Chiefs at 7-2. The Eagles, with a 12-4 record, have home-field advantage throughout the National Football Conference playoffs.

Long Shot

The Palms also has Philadelphia at 5-2, with the Rams at 4-1 and the Chiefs at 6-1. The Patriots, Eagles, Rams and Chiefs have first-round byes in the playoffs, which start on Saturday.

The Seattle Seahawks are the longest shot among the 12 playoff teams at 50-1, according to Palms and Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

The Patriots, who missed the playoffs last year, started this season at 25-1 to win the Super Bowl, Sherman said. Bettors also could have gotten 25-1 odds on the Eagles after they lost their first two games of the season.

Odds on several playoffs teams remained high until the Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, last season's Super Bowl teams, dropped out of playoff contention.

``With the kind of year we've had, like the Raiders and Tampa Bay not getting in, you had the opportunity to get a lot of nice prices on these teams,'' Sherman said.

Last Updated: December 31, 2003 10:25 EST

[kris]

From 25-1, to 2-1 geesh. Pats look really freaking good late in the season, and lets hope the off time doesnt hurt them.

[KidVegas]

New England 3-2 to win the Super Bowl at the Palms? I am going to get in my car and drive over there right now before the odds move to even money.